Curse of the Destiny
by LordGranger
Summary: Post OotP. Trelawney's prophecy is not real. The real prophecy talks about a darkness that can only be stopped by 3 people, chosen by the destiny. Harry, Hermione and their friends are in big danger and they don't know who they can trust. Voldemort gets stronger by getting an ancient dark item that can control the death. Now, dark times are coming. H/Hr.
1. Chapter 1: Unexpected Enemies

_**A/N:**_ I apologise for possible mistakes, English is not my native language so there can be mistakes in grammer, I tried to make it as good as possible. I hope you guys will still like it.

Canon until 5th book, everything else is AU. So no horcruxes or Hollows. Harry and Hermione are the main characters of the story. I tried to be as orginal as possible. Main pairing is H/Hr, but it might take some time before they come together.

The story will get interesting with time and the next chapters are longer than that.

Oh and I disclaim everything, besides the plot. Characters etc. belong to Jk. Rowling, also, the part at the beginning of the chapter is from Order of the Phoenix, it also belongs to J.K. Rowling.

_**Chapter 1: Unexpected Enemies  
**_

_Only one pair was still battling, apparently unaware of the new arrival. Harry saw Sirius duck Bellatrix's jet of red light: he was laughing at her. _

_'Come on, you can do better than that!' he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room. _

_The second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest._

_The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock. Harry released Neville, though he was unaware of doing so. He was jumping down the steps again, pulling out his wand, as Dumbledore, too, turned towards the veil. _

_It seemed to take Sirius an age to fall: his body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backwards through the ragged veil hanging from the arch. Harry saw the look of mingled fear and surprise on his godfather's wasted, once-handsome face as he fell through the ancient doorway and disappeared behind the veil, which fluttered for a moment as though in a high wind, then fell back into place._

"NO!" screamed Harry as he woke up. He was breathing heavily. He tried to find his glasses and looked around. He couldn't even remember when he slept and it was 9 in the morning. Harry potter noticed that he become 16 couple of hours ago, but he really didn't care. He felt like he saw Sirius dying in Department of Mysteries all over again. He tried to calm down while dressing up than went downstairs.

Uncle Vernon was reading his newspaper while waiting for breakfast as he always did. Not for learning something, just to make sure everyone knows that they are completely normal. Dudley was probably still sleeping since Harry couldn´t see him anywhere. And if you couldn´t see Dudley somewhere at first look, it means he wasn´t there. It was hard to not notice someone who was as big as a walrus. Harry went to kitchen to drink a glass water, but before he even entered:

"Don´t come in here boy, I freshly cleaned up" cried Aunt Petunia.

Harry sat on the table, irritated. He was actually quiet happy with this. The only reason his relatives didn't make him do every work at the house is that Petunia didn't trust him for an important job like hygiene. Harry tried to calm down. He was waiting for his friend Ron to invite him soon and with these thoughts, he felt calm enough to sit quietly.

After everyone was seated at the table, Aunt Petunia started gossiping with her husband. It was forbidden for Harry to join this conversation, not that he cared about it. Dudley was too busy absorbing everything eatable on the table as fast as possible to say anything. Compared to Dudley´s eating habits, Ron was a perfect gentleman. Harry was surprised to see his uncle sitting quietly and not talking much. Normally, he enjoyed breakfast gossiping.

"Give me a glass water Harry" said Vernon quietly, confusing Harry once more by using his name. He went to kitchen but before he could even take a glass his aunt gave a loud shriek. He whirled around just to see his uncle running at him with a big knife in his hand. Harry was too shocked to do anything.

At that moment the door blasted open and he saw a red light then everything went dark.

XxXxXxX

Hermione Granger opened her eyes slowly after hearing a voice from her window. She looked at her watch. It was already 9. She cursed herself for sleeping this long and went to the window. She took the Prophet from the owl, and put a few Sickles on its bag. She smiled at the newspaper. They once again wasted more than 3 pages just to get on Harry´s good side. At 5th page, there was a big picture of Cornelius Fudge.

_**Fudge Quit his job!**_

_After letting down the magical world more than once, not accepting You-Know-Who´s return until it was too late, showing the young hero of the wizarding world Harry Potter and the popular Headmaster of Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore as liars, Cornelius Fudge lost all his credit on every ones eyes. Most people started saying that he wasn´t capable of doing his job anymore. So the minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge resigned from his position._

Hermione didn´t read the rest. The prophet is getting more stupid each year, she thought. Funny think is, Fudge leaving his job made only to 5th page. They obviously thought the Battle of the Ministry, which they keep publishing nearly every week this summer was more important than ministers quitting. She put the newspaper away and run downstairs.

She grumbled while washing her face. Perfect day to oversleep. They had to go to Diagon Alley before her father went to work, so she can buy her school supplies and a birthday present for Harry. She went to living room, hoping her mother woke up earlier than her.

Fortunately, her parents were already up and furthermore, breakfast was ready. She happily run to her parents and hugged them.

´´Good morning love´´ said Mrs. Granger. ´´It looks like even we are more excited than you if you can sleep so much.´´

She blushed. Her father said nothing.

´´So we are going today. No problems, right, dad?´´ said Hermione. Mr. Granger shook his head negatively. Hermione didn´t lost her good mood, but wondered why her normally talkative father was this quiet.

"What´s wrong?"

"Nothing" said Mr. Granger with an emotionless voice.

"Probably something about his job" thought Hermione and let it go. None of them talked much while eating their breakfast. Hermione got more and more curious but didn´t say anything. After 20 minutes, she got up to wash her hands.

Suddenly, she saw a red light behind her. She whirled around and saw her mother lying on the floor and her dad walking towards her with a wand in his hand and a sadistic look on his face.

´´Avada Kedavra´´ said Mr. Granger. In last second, she realized something was horribly wrong and threw herself behind the sofa. She tried to recover from the shock. It was impossible. Her own father was trying to kill her. But wait, it was really impossible. Her dad was not a wizard.

BAM. The door crashed loudly and then another red light came from the doorway. Hermione readied herself for the worst and looked up. She saw her father lying on the floor and a tall man standing next to him.

XxXxXxX

´´Rennervate´´

Harry slowly opened his eyes. Someone was standing right in front of him. She got up and looked at the man with a lot of scars on his face.

"Well, happy birthday Potter" grumbled Mad Eye Moody. "I couldn't bring any presents so I hope saving you was enough. Well, never mind. Oh and I guess I should apologies for stunning you."

"What's going on Professor? Why did Uncle Vernon attack me?" asked Harry. He called him Professor, because the man in front of him was once his teacher at Hogwarts. He looked around and saw the Dursley's lying unconscious.

"Dumbledore will explain. My job is to take you to him." said Moody. ´"He send me, because he had apparently had something else to do."

"Well, how can we go to him?" asked Harry. He had thousands of questions, but knew that Moody wouldn't answer them.

"Apparation" said the old auror simply. "Hold my arm."

Harry obeyed. He felt a really uncomfortable pulling on his stomach and then disappeared.

"Professor Dumbledore!" shrieked Hermione.

"Are you okay Hermione" asked to old wizard. ´"I am sorry for being this late."

Hermione couldn't help. She started crying and hugged the headmaster.

"P- Professor, my dad…" But she couldn't finish.

"This is not your father Miss Granger," said Dumbledore while trying to comfort her. "Your father never left his bed today. He is under a strong sleeping charm but not harmed. This is a Death Eater disguised as your father most likely to kill you."

"And my mother?" asked the girl, trying to calm down. She didn't know why they wanted to kill her and she didn't care.

"Only stunned" answered Dumbledore. "I will explain everything but we have to leave now. Harry is probably waiting for us. Hold my arm."

He turned his wand to the unconscious Death Eater and made it disappear. Hermione looked at her mother one last time than hold the headmasters arm. She felt him whirling around and than everything disappeared.

XxXxXxX

Harry found himself in a broom closet.

"Wait here Potter" said Moody and left.

Harry sat down and started thinking about what happened earlier. He knew his uncle hated him but this was too much, even for him. Considering that Dumbledore was involved, he concluded that his uncle was somehow cursed. Still, it didn't made sense. The order knew that he was a target for Voldemort, so how come it was so easy to get to his relatives.

Suddenly, two people appeared next to him.

"Harry" screamed Hermione and hugged him. Harry happily hugged her back. Than, both of them turned to Dumbledore.

"Well, I know, I have to explain what happened today so please sit down" said Dumbledore and conjured 3 chairs.

Both of them sat down, wondering about each others presence and waited for his explanation.

"First, neither Granger's nor Dursley's are hurt. They are getting an explanation at the moment." he said. Hermione relaxed visibly, but Harry didn't know what to feel.

"Harry, you should know that Vernon Dursley was under the Imperius Curse" continued Dumbledore. Hermione was surprised hearing about the attack but decided to say nothing. For now.

"I thought the same Professor" said Harry.

"Is there something else bothering you my boy?" asked the headmaster smartly. His blue eyes once again looked like they were going right through him.

"How come they could curse him so easily?" asked the Boy Who Lived. "You are always protecting me but did nobody thought about this possibility?"

"Harry, the situation is more complicated than you think and I really can't explain all of it. But let me tell you this, Dursleys were protected with wards that even Voldemort himself can't break. At least that is what I thought." said Dumbledore.

Harry didn't answer. He already felt ashamed for blurting out everything but Dumbledore didn't seem to mind and turned to his best friend.

"As for you Hermione, I already told everything you need to know. Now, for the rest of the summer, you two will…"

"Why did they attack me Professor?" asked Hermione quickly. "I mean, since when are they trying to kill me specifically?"

"I actually hoped not to get there today" said Dumbledore calmly. But the girl didn't miss a hint of unease in his voice. "I can't give an explanation to you now. I'll tell everything when the time comes. Until then, you both have to take care of yourselves."

"Yes Professor" said Hermione unhappily and Harry just nodded.

"You will spent the rest of the summer with Weasleys'. This is their broom closet by the way. They are informed about your situation. All your belongings will be brought later, don't worry about that. If you don't have any other questions, than we can go."

They both nodded again. After that they followed Dumbledore to the Burrow, with more questions on their minds than even before.

"What was that?" whispered Harry to Hermione. She shrugged.

Dumbledore winked at them and apparated, leaving the kids alone in front of the Burrow. They both sighed and slowly knocked the door.


	2. Chapter 2: OWL's

**A/N:** This will be the shortest chapter of the story. The chapters will get longer with time. Next chapter will get more exciting, I can promise that. Please review if you read this, it really helps. I know I am a beginner and I make mistakes.

Oh and I disclaim everything, besides the plot.

CHAPTER 2: OWLs

"Finally" said Mrs. Weasley with a worried voice, hugging both of them. "Where is Dumbledore?"

"Gone" said Harry simply. Mrs. Weasley frowned.

"Are you hungry" she asked after they entered and after she made sure they both were still one piece. "I can prepare something if you want"

"Thank you Mrs. Weasley, but I already had breakfast" said Hermione politely. Harry nodded.

"Okay, then you can go to Ron's room. The kids are waiting for you. We will have a meeting here, so please stay there until we call you."

"Order meeting? Here?" asked Harry.

"The others can explain it to you" smiled Mrs. Weasley.

"If you old guys are done chatting we young ones are taking you with us. No offense mum" said a voice from the door. "Hi, Harry! Hermione!"

Both of them turned to the stairs to see Fred Weasley grinning at them. They thanked Molly and followed Fred upstairs.

"So, what are you guys doing here?" asked Harry, that knew Fred wouldn't go anywhere without his twin. "Ron said you both lived in your new joke shop"

"We do. But we came to see the famous Boy-Who-Lived and our favorite bookworm" said Fred, still grinning.

"Shut up" said Hermione good naturedly. "So, have you invented anything new?

"Since when do you care about joking material?" came Ron's voice from inside his room.

"Not the best question to ask in this situation Ronnie" said Ginny as the others entered the room.

"We invented a lot of things" said George after greeting them. "We can show it to you guys later. But first…"

"…You will tell us what happened" finished Fred.

"We were worried sickly." said Ron after hugging Hermione and punching Harry in a friendly way.

They sat down and both told the others their part of the story. There was a silence after they finished explaining.

"Well, it is no surprise that they attacked Harry" said Fred in a serious tone. "But…"

"…how could they curse Dursley's so easily," concluded Harry.

"And why did they attack Hermione?" added Ron.

"I am not sure" said Hermione thoughtfully. "Maybe because I am a muggleborn or because I am Harry's friend"

"I don't think so" said Ginny. "I doubt they would go all this trouble to reach you just because you are a muggleborn. Besides, no one else was attacked"

"As for being Harry's friend, that is a possibility" said Fred. "One of the few negatives of being buddies with the Chosen One."

"That doesn't explain why Dumbledore would come personally," said Hermione, as Harry gave Fred a dirty look. "From what he said before, I think there is something more complicated than that."

"Well, he did say he will tell you at Hogwarts, didn't he?" said George firmly. "It is not good to be that curious young Lady. If you would have gave as much attention to your schoolwork as you do with that kind of nonsense, you would have been the best in your year."

Hermione pretented to be angry while everyone else laughed. But she couldn't stop a smile forming in her face.

"Well, time is Galleon guys" said Fred. "We should go now. But we will visit again, so try to behave yourselves."

"So no following dark lords for an ancient magical item" added George.

"No slicing basilisks"

"No fighting against mountain trolls"

"No illegally entering a dangerous tournament"

"No breaking in to ministry"

"No…"

"I think we all get what you mean" interrupted Hermione.

"Wow, I was sure there was a reason why we call you the smartest witch of your age" said Fred grinning. Then both apparated before she could say anything.

"I should go downstairs" said Ginny happily. "I have to have breakfast before the meeting starts or else I'll starve. Sometimes, it takes hours."

After Ginny left, Harry looked at the other two. He knew he had to tell them about the prophecy. But this could wait know. He was not ready to tell his friends, that he has to murder or be murdered, yet. Instead, he looked at Ron:

"So what about this order meeting?" he asked.

"You know, after…eh, well… after Sirius died" said Ron looking sad. "Well, the order lost the Grimmauld Place."

"I thought Sirius left everything to Harry" said Hermione.

"Yes but it seems, Blacks used an ancient magic so no one can inherit the house as long as there is another living Black."

"That means…" said Harry unhappy.

"That means, the house belongs either to Bellatrix Lestrange or to Narcissa Malfoy," came a voice from the door. They turned to see Remus Lupin entering the room, smiling. "Since we don't have the acceptance of the owner, the Fidellius Charm stopped working. I don't know why, but for some reason Dumbledore didn't think that Lestrange or Malfoy would be willing to help us. This is why we made Burrow the new head quarters.

"Not that I complain but why here and not somewhere else?" asked Hermione.

"Considering that nearly half of the order is from Weasley clan, it would be an insult not to do it here" laughed Lupin.

"How are you, Professor Lupin?" asked Harry.

"Since I am not your teacher anymore, please call me Remus," said Lupin still smiling. "I am as well as I can be, I am working with werewolves these days. Please don't ask anything related to this."

They chatted a bit until Remus excused himself and went to the meeting. After he left, Harry turned to his friends. He decided to tell everything before Ginny came back.

"What's wrong Harry?" asked Hermione, noticing the change of expression of her friends face. Harry took a deep breath.

"Listen, I have to tell you something" he started quickly. "You remember the prophecy that Voldemort wanted to steal?"

"Yes" said Hermione, ignoring Ron's flinching. "Wasn't it broken?"

"Yes, but I still know what it says" said Harry, trying not to meet their eyes. Then he told them everything Dumbledore said to him at the end of last year. A long silence followed after he finished his story. Ron looked frightened, Hermione rather skeptical. But before any of them could say anything, Ginny entered the room.

"Later" whispered Harry simply.

"So, what were you guys talking about?" asked Ginny.

"Nothing!" said all three of them with a fake grin.

Few weeks after he came to Burrow, Harry alongside Ron woke up with a loud scream.

"Whas'up?" said Ron sleepily.

Before Harry could say anything, they heard Hermione's voice.

"Harry! Ron! Come down quick" she said excitedly.

The boys dressed up wondering what happened and went downstairs.

"Our OWL scores are here" cried Hermione as soon as they entered the room. She was standing next to 3 owls, by the window. She was shaking visibly. She waited for this the whole summer but forgot after coming here. The boys both got excited and Harry opened his scores. He noticed that his hands were shaking a little and looked at the parchment.

**Ordinary Wizarding Level Results **

Pass Grades:

Outstanding (O)

Exceeds Expectations (E)

Acceptable (A)

Fail Grades:

Poor (P)

Dreadful (D)

Troll (T)

**Harry James Potter has achieved: **

Astronomy: A

Care of Magical Creatures: E

Charms: O

Defense Against the Dark Arts: O

Divination: P

Herbology E

History of Magic: D

Potions E

Transfiguration E

Harry felt relived. Ron was also pretty happy and showed him his results. His scores was the same as Harry's, with exception of Charms, where he got an Exceed Expectations. He looked at Hermione and saw that she still didn't open her envelope. She was too excited for that. The others helped her and they all looked at her scores.

**Ordinary Wizarding Level Results **

Pass Grades:

Outstanding (O)

Exceeds Expectations (E)

Acceptable (A)

Fail Grades:

Poor (P)

Dreadful (D)

Troll (T)

**Hermione Jane Granger has achieved: **

Astronomy: O

Care of Magical Creatures: O

Charms: O

Defense Against the Dark Arts O

Aritmancy: O

Herbology: O

Ancient Runes: O

History of Magic: O

Potions: O

Transfiguration O

Hermione stared at her scores for one whole minute before looking up.

"What is wrong Herm?" asked Ron, trying not to laugh. "Are you analyzing each "O" separately?

"Thank you very much Hermione" said Harry, pretending to be annoyed. "Now I feel bad about my own scores. But still, you didn't get enough O's if you ask me. Maybe you should ask Dumbledore for an extra credit."

"Okay, I get it. Stop now" smiled Hermione. She finally calmed down and looked at the scores of her best friends. All were happy with their archivement.

Well nothing to say for you Hermione. Simply outstanding" said Mrs Weasley proudly. Hermione blushed. "But I am also pretty happy with you two. Well, except for Divination and History."

"Forget it mum" said Ron. "I always wanted to get rid of Divination. Now we can simply drop it."

Mrs. Weasley looked like she wanted to object, but decided not to say anything about it.

"If Arthur doesn't have to go to work, we can visit Diagon Alley next week"

Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny sat down at the table. They ate quietly for a while. Then suddenly the door slammed open and Remus entered the room with a wild expression.

"What's wrong?" asked Mrs. Weasley worriedly.

"Death Eaters Molly. They are going to attack Burrow. They know where they are." said Lupin out of breath, pointing at the table. While he was talking, Moody, Tonks, Kingley, Arhur and Bill came, all with panic on their faces.

"WHAT?" screamed kids together.

"Does Dumbledore know, Arhur?" asked Mrs. Weasley looking at her husband, while Fred and George came in to room.

"Severus contacted the school first but it seems he is not there. He contacted us and now he is trying to find Dumbledore."

"We have to bring the kids to safety" said Moody.

"We are not going anywhere" said Hermione firmly.

"I am not going to run away while you fight" said Harry, supporting his friend.

"You don't understand" said an angry Moody. "Tonks and Remus, take them to safety"

Tonks and Lupin didn't make him repeat his order. They quickly took all the kids before any of them could object and whirled to apparate. Nothing happened.

"Damn it" said Lupin. Moody cursed.

"They put anti-apparation wards" growled Moody.

"What are we gonna do" said a worried Tonks.

"Bill, you are a curse breaker. Can you break this ward?" asked Moody, trying to stay calm.

"Alone it would take too much time. Time that we don't have," said Bill.

"Okay, no choice. Molly, take the kids upstairs and…"

"THEY ARE HERE" screamed Kingsley.

Before anyone could stop her, Hermione walked to the window. She saw more than 50 Death Eaters apparating in the garden and they all started shooting spells at the house.


	3. Chapter 3: Targets

**A/N: **So chapter 3 and it is starting to get interesting. I want to thank everyone that left a comment. Please review.

Oh, and I disclaim everything, besides the plot.

**Chapter 3: Target**

"Harry, you have to leave" screamed Hermione to him.

"NEVER" roared Harry. "I am their target, so you guys have to go"

"DO YOU EXPECT ME TO RUN AND LEAVE MY WHOLE FAMILY" screamed Ron. Ginny nodded sharply.

"YOU ARE ALL LEAVING" said Moody from the garden. They already started fighting and everyone, besides the children were outside. "GO UPSTAIRS AND HIDE"

"What are we going to do" asked Hermione trying to stay calm. "They are outnumbered, they can't win this"

At that moment, the door slam open and before anyone could stop them 3 masked Death Eaters entered the house.

"They are here. Both of t…" screamed the one on the front.

"_Petrificus Totalus"_ said Hermione before he could finish. The unprepared Death Eater got hit with the spell and fell down.

"_Crucio_" said the other one, pointing his wand at Hermione. She ducked at the last second and the spell hit the clock behind her. Ginny send a stunner to the Death Eater but missed. The last one pointed his wand at Ginny:

"_Avada Ke_…"

"_Reducto"_ screamed Hermione. The desk in front of the Death Eater exploded loudly. He fell backwards and his head hit the wall, knocking him out. Harry and Ron used this chance perfectly.

"_Stupefy_!" Both boys shot a red light from their wand and hit the last one right on his chest, throwing him out of the house.

"There is no reason to leave the battle" said Ron. "They will come whatever we do. Their target is here"

"Targets" corrected Ginny, still thinking about the Death Eaters choice of words. Hermione also wondered about this but knew that it could wait.

"You are right. Let's go" said Hermione. All of them prepared for battle but Hermione hold Harry back.

"Be careful Harry. This fight is to protect you. Don't forget that."

"I will. But I want you guys to be careful as well"

Hermione hugged him just for a second then they both followed the others. It was not a pretty sight. Tonks and Professor McGonagall (It seems they had reinforcements from Hogwarts) were lying unconscious. Moody had a big cut on his left arm, but stubbornly kept fighting. The enemy lost more than the order but they still had the advantage in numbers.

As soon as they left the house one of the Death Eaters shot a purple spell at Ron.

"RON" screamed Hermione, but it was too late. The spell hit Ron on the face and he fell, unconscious. Hermione pointed her wand at the Death Eater and send one of the new spells she learned. It was a spell that gave a mild shock of electricity to incapacitate the enemy. She learned her lesson the hard way in Department of Mysteries and she now knew that she couldn't risk to let her enemy stand up again. It was not a lethal spell but still better than a stunner, which can be canceled with a simple enervate.

The blue spell hit its target and he fell screaming to the ground. He was out cold. She didn't think it would affect him this much but she was too angry to care. She turned her wand to the tall masked man that was dueling Ginny and put him down with a stunner. But another Death Eater took advantage of her lack of concentration.

"_Depulso"_

Hermione felt the spell pushing her and she hit the wall. She had lost her wand and she barely remained conscious. She looked up, forcing herself to look at the Death Eater. It was Dolohov. He had lost his mask before and he was grinning madly.

"_Stupefy"_ he said with a maniacal grin.

Hermione couldn't move. But before the spell hit her, Lupin came between them and stopped the red jet of light.

"We told you to leave" roared Lupin while he started dueling Dolohov. Hermione ignored his statement and quickly recovered her wand.

"Thank you Remus" she said and run to the other side before he could answer. She run past a motionless Ginny and run to Harry, who was attacked by two Death Eaters at the same time. About 10 Death Eaters and Mr. Weasley, Fred and George were lying unconscious. Hermione hoped that they were still alive but she couldn't do anything right now. She petrified the Death Eater that was about to use Cruciatus curse on Harry. The other Death Eater shot a spell that Hermione never saw before. It was pitch black and although it missed her, she felt an unnatural force coming from the obvious dark spell.

"_Stupefy"_ shouted Harry, making good use of this distraction. It hit his target on the face and knocked him out.

"Thanks" said Harry. They gave back to back and readied their wands. 5 Death Eaters were coming right at them from all directions. All of them threw different curses at the duo. They throw themselves to the floor. Only one of them hit their target but disappeared by Hermione's shield.

Suddenly they heard Lupin's painful cry and his 3 enemies came at the two as well. They were forced to the wall and couldn't move.

Hermione looked around. They were cornered by 8 of them. With an obvious panic, she noticed they were the only ones standing. All Order members were defeated. Neither Harry nor Hermione tried to do anything, knowing it was hopeless.

One of them pulled her mask out and grinned at them. Harry felt a sudden flow of rage at seeing herface.

"It is over" said Bellatrix Lestrange with lust in her voice. Harry tried to attack her with obvious hate in his eyes but before he could say a single incantation, a red light hit him on the face and he fell unconscious.

Won't you defend yourself mudblood" asked Lestrange with hate filled eyes "I think I am allowed to enjoy myself a bit"

She pointed her wand at the younger girl.

"_Crucio"_

Hermione couldn't do anything. As pain flowed through her body, she tried not to scream. It was worse than she ever imagined. With last bit of her power, she forced herself to look at Bellatrix's eyes. "Kill me" she thought. "I don't want to show weakness to your kind. Kill me now."

Then suddenly, loud pops filled the battlefield. Before the Death Eaters knew what was going on they got attacked by Ministry employers. Bellatrix cursed and apparated. 2 other Death Eaters followed her. The others were not that lucky. 20 different spells hit the remaining Death Eaters and all 5 of them fell like puppets without a marionette.

"Harry, Hermione. Are you okay" came a worried voice. Hermione looked up and saw Albus Dumbledore right in front of them. She felt all stress and adrenaline leave her body. Last thing she saw was Dumbledore's face before everything went dark.

XxXxXxXx

Harry was standing in an unknown place. It was dark and only thing he could see was a body convulsing in front of him. He couldn't remember how he came here. He was feeling an overwhelming anger and didn't know why he felt like that.

"What did you just say" said Harry. His voice was different. It sounded dangerous and nearly like hissing. "You say that you cornered the boy and the girl and then let them get away. Is that what happened Bella?"

"My lord" cried the figure in front of him. She looked like she was tortured for hours. "We fought against Dumbledore's Order. Before we could do anything to the kids, the Aurors attacked us. They outnumbered…"

"LIAR! _CRUCIO_!" hissed Harry. The woman screamed with pain but Harry didn't stop. "I can see the truth in your worthless mind Bella. You cornered them but tried to take you own revenge on the girl"

"But my Lord" complained Bellatrix with a weak voice. "She nearly killed Rodolphus. Maybe he is already…"

"DO YOU THINK I CARE ABOUT THIS" said Harry with hate. "It is his own fault, if your husband is weak enough to lose against a kid. HIS FAULTH. And your targets escape was," feeling the anger starting to overwhelm him again. "YOUR FAULTH."

He made another Cruciatus Curse. Then he heard another voice calling him.

"Harry!"

What was he doing here? He was hurt in the battle. He couldn't torture anyone. He was Harry. Not Voldemort. Harry.

Harry slowly opened his eyes. He was lying on something soft. He noticed that it must be a bed and looked around without moving his head. He noticed that someone took his glasses.

"Harry, are you okay? Can you hear me?" asked a voice filled with fear. It was a girl. Harry flattened and found his glasses. In front of him were a worried Hermione and a taken aback Dumbledore.

"I am fine" said Harry. He noticed many little scars on Hermione's arms and face and suddenly remembered everything about the attack.

"Are YOU okay?" asked Harry, suddenly panicking. Hermione simply nodded. "And the others? How are they?"

"Harry, calm down" said Dumbledore. He sounded tired. "I have to inform the others that you woke up. Try to calm down till I came back. I think Mrs. Granger can tell you what happened."

"Professor" said Hermione suddenly. "You said you would answer some questions after Harry woke up"

"I will answer your questions when I came back. I have to go now" said Dumbledore and left quickly.

"How are the others Hermione? I can remember that we were the last ones standing. What happened?" asked Harry rapidly.

"Ron and Ginny are at home, resting. They are conscious but still a little weak. Fred, George, McGonagall and Mr. Weasley were only stunned. Remus, Tonks and Moody are still here in St. Mungo"

"Why" asked Harry. He now noticed that he was in hospital.

"Remus has some broken bones but he will make full recovery. Moody nearly lost his arm. They are still trying to heal him. As for Tonks, no one really knows what happened to her. She is alive, that is sure but she still didn't wake up. All the others are fine."

Hermione knew what Harry was thinking. She too wondered about the same thing.

"Why didn't they kill anyone" asked Harry thoughtfully.

"I say, you shouldn't complain about this" came a voice from the door. Ron entered the room, holding himself upright with his left arm.

"I don't know how you manage this Harry" said Ron grinning. "We are hurt and you still managed to get all the attention"

"Shut up" said Harry, who knew he was kidding.

"I think he does have a point Harry" said Hermione.

"You are the last one to talk young lady. I heard you were the last one standing and fell after the battle ended" said Ron to her.

"I was tortured" she said getting angry. They both looked shocked at this statement.

"You said you were alright" said Harry, with obvious hurt in his voice.

"I am okay. This is also what I meant to say with Ron having a point. You were only stunned Harry. Your condition doesn't make any sense."

"What about my condition" asked Harry.

"You are sleeping since over a week Harry" said Ron. "Sometimes I believe that Malfoy is right about you and Hospital Wing. You just don't know when to leave once you enter.

"Did you see Voldemort" asked Hermione, ignoring Ron.

"Yes, I saw him torturing Bellatrix. I can't remember the details. He was angry"

"Probably because she wasted time toying with me instead of doing her job" said Hermione.

"WHAT" screamed both boys together.

"After cornering us and you fell unconscious, she tortured me. She looked angry for some reason."

Suddenly Harry remembered something about the conversation he just witnessed.

"Voldemort punished Bellatrix for taking revenge on her on a girl that killed her husband" said Harry slowly. This time it was Hermione's turn to be surprised.

"Husband?" Then she remembered. She did curse a Death Eater after he hexed Ron. But no, It couldn't have kill him.

"Did you do it" asked Harry.

"Well, not really" said Hermione, defending herself. "I did use a spell but he didn't die. No one died. All of them were sent to Azkaban. Professor Dumbledore said that there were some in critical condition but nobody died."

"Eh, it looks like Bellatrix didn't know this" said Ron. But Harry had something else in mind.

"What spell did you use" he asked.

"Some kind of shocking spell, but it is nothing vital. It is just a spell to render the opponent inactive." Said Hermione, she was nearly pleading now.

"Does it seem like we are complaining" asked Ron but Hermione didn't feel better.

"I didn't kill anyone. I AM NOT A MURDERER" she screamed with a sudden anger. Then she started crying.

"Calm down Herm" said Harry in a calming manner. He looked concerned. "We know. He was a Death Eater and you did the right thing."

"It wasn't your fault" said Ron firmly.

"I am sorry" said Hermione. "It is just, I could have become a murderer and this thought makes me crazy."

Hermione lie down at the empty bed next to him and tried to calm down.

"I think this instability is infectious" whispered Ron. As an answer, Harry threw his pillow at him.

XxXxXxXx

Dumbledore didn't visit them that day. Instead, he send a message with Mrs. Weasley telling he was sorry. Hermione wondered if the headmaster was doing it on purpose, just to delay answering her.

Next day the trio came back to Burrow alongside Mrs. Weasley and the twins. It looked like the house repaired itself in their absence and everything was on its place.

Mrs. Weasley quickly prepared dinner and they all started eating quietly.

"You should all pack your things. You know that you have to go to Hogwarts tomorrow" said Mrs. Weasley after a while, surprising the kids. After everything that happened, they lost the track of time.

"Where is Ginny" asked Harry.

"He is still sleeping" answered Mrs. Weasley.

"She still didn't fully recovered?" asked Harry with concern.

"She did, but she is still a little weak" said Molly calmly. "She already packed everything for tomorrow. Hermione, please don't wake her up when you go upstairs. If she knows that you are back then she wouldn't sleep again and I want her to rest as much as possible."

"Of course" said Hermione smiling. She stood up and turned to the stairs, followed by Harry and Ron. But at that moment an owl with a red envelope came through the open window. Before any of them could touch it, the envelope burst into flames. Suddenly, the screams of a woman, whose voice was magically increased filled the room.

"YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO MY HUSBAND AND FOR TORTURES I HAD TO ENDURE TODAY. YOU WILL CURSE THE DAY YOU EVER MET ME, MUDBLOOD!"

Harry, Ron and Molly looked at Hermione with the same shock on their faces. She noticed that she was trembling. Before anyone could say anything she run upstairs and quickly fled to her room.


	4. Chapter 4: Dumbledore?

**A/N: **I am sorry that it took so long to update. Not much happens in this chapter but it was necessary. So I am introducing my first original character here. Don't worry, he is not a super hero or something and has some role in the story. He is not a main character.

I decided to make this a H/Hr story, so this character is not for Hermione. I want to thank everyone that reviewed.

Oh and I disclaim everything besides the plot.

**Chapter 4: Dumbledore?**

The next day, there was chaos at Burrow. Harry and Ron didn't pack their belongings till last minute and therefore got scolded by Mrs. Weasley. She was running around the house with panic and was ready to explode to anyone. She was saying that they were late every 5 minute and forced them to hurry.

"Everyone out" screamed Mrs. Weasley after everyone got ready. "Ministry cars are here"

Hermione tried not to meet Mrs. Weasley's or any Order members eyes, as she left her room. She knew that Mrs. Weasley told them about the howler and she didn't want to talk about the Bellatrix incident yet. This is why it was the first time that she left the room since yesterday. Relived that no one asked any questions, she followed Harry, Ron, Ginny and a fully healed Lupin to the car.

The ride went much smoother than last time. Harry and Ron's owls were in their cages and Crookshanks was safely in his box. So they reached Kings Cross timely for the first time. First Lupin and Harry entered the platform, followed by Hermione who was escorted by a grim looking auror. Then other kids entered the platform, which allowed entrance to the train to Hogwarts, each escorted with at least one adult.

All of them couldn't help but smile at the sight of the train. Hermione missed the school very much. She wanted to go as soon as possible, where no one would ask her intimidating questions. But the main reason why she wanted to go to Hogwarts as fast as possible was Dumbledore's promise to answer her questions. In her eyes the fact that he delayed answering was a proof that it was something important and made her wonder even more.

After saying goodbye to her own children, Mrs. Weasley turned to the other two:

"Be careful you two" she said nicely. "You are of course invited for Christmas. I am waiting if nothing unusual happens"

"I would like that" said Harry sincerely. But Hermione, who felt guilty because she didn't spend much time with her parents only smiled.

"Thanks for everything Mrs. Weasley" said Hermione instead of answering.

"No problem love. You should be careful as well. You know what I mean" said the woman. "Now hurry or you will miss the train"

Kids quickly talked with Arthur and Remus and boarded the train. Hermione and Ron quitted being prefects last year, mainly to accompany Harry. This is why they found an empty platform with Harry, while their replacement Ginny went to do her prefects duties alongside Dean. She glared at Ron and Hermione before she left them.

"We should find a platform" said Ron. "Or else we will have nowhere to sit or worse, we will have to sit with Malfoy"

The other two nodded and started searching. In each compartment, people kept staring at Harry like they saw a Blast Ended Screwt.

"Ronald! Harry! Hermione! Over here"

They saw Luna calling them and went to her compartment. It was empty, except for Luna and a boy who was looking out of the window.

"Hi Luna. How are you" asked Hermione.

"I am okay I guess. It was a little boring without DA. But still not bad" said Luna with her usual dreamy voice. Then she turned to the other boy. "I didn't introduce you, did I? This is Nathan. New at school. And these are Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley"

The boy turned to them and smiled. He had dark brown hair and a thin, handsome face. He was a little longer than Harry and Hermione but shorter than Ron. He was already wearing his robes. But the most remarkable aspect were his eyes.

His eyes were blood red. At first it reminded Harry of Voldemort but after he looked carefully, he noticed that it was not the case. He didn't know if it was the same color but his eyes were warmer and he was smiling sincerely.

"Hi" said Nathan. "My father said a lot about you three"

"Your father?" asked Ron.

"It is better if I don't say it for now" answered Nathan. Hermione thought that he didn't trust them.

"Nathan is new and he is a 6th year" said Luna.

"Yeah, my father was teaching me since I was 7" said Nathan. "But I never came to school for safety reasons. I always wanted to come, because I was kind of isolated at home. I will be at the sorting today" he explained to them.

"How nice. I hope you will be in Gryffindor" said Hermione.

"Or Rewanclaw" said Luna with a hint of anger in her voice.

"Not to offense anyone but I am okay with anything besides Slytherin" said Nathan grinning.

"What happened to your eyes" asked Harry not holding back any longer.

"What? Oh, you mean that" he answered. "My parents were murdered by Death Eaters when I was a baby"

"I am sorry" said Hermione.

"But then…" started Ron.

"Yeah, my father adopted me after that incident. He saved me after my parents died. But my eyes were damaged with a dark curse. Well, actually more than damaged, they were totally destroyed. Dad tried to heal them but he couldn't. So he used a different spell and gave me these eyes. I am actually happy about it, they even have some abilities"

"I am sorry that I asked" said Harry. "It is just…"

"It is just my eyes reminded you of Voldemort" said Nathan, surprising all of them. It was a surprise that he noticed this similarity and was still smiling. But the real surprise was how easy he used Voldemort's name. Harry and Hermione were the only ones from their age that used his name.

"Aren't you scared of using Voldemort's name" asked Hermione curiously.

"You don't seem to be scared as well" grinned Nathan. "Why should I be scared? If you fear some ones name, you will fear the real thing even more"

That was pretty familiar to Harry but he didn't comment on that. They kept talking all the way to Hogwarts and quickly liked Nathan. He was obviously smart and looked like a decent guy.

After they arrived at Hogwarts (Now all of them had their robes on) they got out of the train. Luna left but Nathan stayed with them. As they entered one of the cars, Hermione heard Hagrid calling for the first years, as he always did. She cheerfully waved to the half giant. Hermione still couldn't see the Thestrals that drew the cars, but from the look on his face, Nathan could see them.

"My neighbor" said Nathan, who knew what she was thinking. "They got killed by Death Eaters when I was 5"

Hermione didn't say anything. There was too much noise to have a conversation. She noticed that some cars had only 2 passengers. "The parents don't trust the school anymore" she thought sadly.

It was pretty cold, even if it wasn't raining. They gratefully entered the warm school. Nathan apologized to them and went to Professor McGonagall. The others sat down at the Gryffindor table.

"I hope Dumbledore will keep it short, I am starving" said Ron.

"There is still the sorting so you have to starve a little longer" said Nearly Headless Nick to the redhead.

"Where do you think Nathan will be sorted" asked Hermione worriedly.

"I don't know, but he looks okay. So we can probably eliminate Slytherin" answered Harry. He also liked Nathan and hoped for him to become a Gryffindor.

The sorting of the first years had already started.

"Blair, Klaus"

A small boy came forward and hastily put the hat on.

"GRYFFINDOR"

The boy walked to their table with obvious relive. The sorting went on and finally, McGonagall read the last name.

"Dumbledore, Nathan"

There was a long silence at the great hall. Everyone looked at Nathan, who looked pretty uncomfortable. Harry, Hermione and Ron were still in shock.

"Well, it looks like his father was Dumbledore" said Harry.

"That would explain a lot of things" said Hermione, but she still didn't seem convinced. Then Dumbledore stood up and walked to Nathan, who looked pretty intimidate by everyone staring at him.

"I know that it can be a little surprising" said Dumbledore smiling. "Nathan is my godson and he wasn't at Hogwarts until today. But he is talented so I would think twice before messing with him. He will be a 6th year. I am sure you will welcome him warmly"

Everyone still looked at him like he was an alien of some sort and Nathan was starting to get angry. He gave a last, apologizing look to Hermione and the others then put the ancient hat on.

The golden trio waited for nearly a whole minute before the hat finally screamed:

"GRYFFINDOR"

Relieved Nathan walked to his new table. Harry, Ron and Hermione started clapping excitedly. Luna, who looked a little unhappy, clapped as well. Everyone else looked still dumbfounded.

"You are also a Gryffindor" said Hermione excitedly.

"Yes" said Nathan. "I confess I was really scared"

"You didn't tell us that your godfather was Dumbledore" said Ron, but he didn't look angry.

"My father said that I shouldn't tell anyone until he gives the necessary explanation" he said shrugging. "Actually, he is not my godfather. He said it to avoid unnecessary questions"

"If you are Dumbledore's son than you must be really strong" interrupted Dean. Dumbledore stood up again before anyone could say anything.

"There are things I have to say but they can wait for now. Tuck in"

Everyone started eating. Ron and Harry (who barely ate anything that day) were eating to fast to do anything else. Meanwhile, Hermione introduced the staff to Nathan.

"The woman next to Professor Dumbledore is McGonagall. She teaches transfiguration. A little strict but mostly fair. The short man next to her is Professor Flitchwick, charms teacher. Next to him is the potion teacher Snape"

"I know him" interrupted Nathan. "Actually, I met the ones from the order. I can't say that I liked him that much"

"Wou'r aight'o ot ayk im" started Ron, his mouth still full. Nathan looked at him with a confused look on his face, while Hermione looked disgusted.

"He says that you are right to not like him. Don't worry, soon you will get used to Ron's caveman language" Hermione said looking at the redhead. Nathan and Harry laughed while Ron gave her a sharp look. Hermione ignored him and turned to the others.

"Do you think Dumbledore found a new teacher" she asked the them.

"There is no one new at the table" said Neville.

The food vanished much to Ron's dislike and Dumbledore stood up again. The hall went silent.

"I want to welcome all our new students. Old students: hello again. First, I want to tell our new students that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden to everyone. It actually should be obvious but in case it isn't, I want to remind our old students that it is still forbidden. Mr. Filch wanted me to say that every joke product, especially from Weasley Wizarding Wheezes are strictly forbidden"

"Everyone who wants to participate at Quidditch team can talk to his or her Head of House. I am sorry to say that our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor hasn't arrived yet. As an apology, I am going to give these lessons for awhile"

There was an excited murmur at the hall. Dumbledore kept going.

"If I can't come for some reason, Professor Snape will be my replacement"

Harry got angry at this and he was not the only one. Everyone knew that Snape always wanted to teach DADA but everyone believed that he shouldn't get his wish.

"Circumstances these days make this lesson to important to skip. The reason is the return of the Dark Lord, known as Lord Voldemort"

All students trembled in fear at the mention of the name. Dumbledore didn't seem to notice.

"I know you are all tired and your beds are waiting for you. As comfortable as you can imagine. I don't want to stress you on the first day. I wish all of you a good night"

The trio and Nathan stood up. Then they heard a lazy voice from behind.

"Wow, it looks like the half blood, blood traitor and mudblood group got another orphan. How nice"

"It looks like your group made no changes this year Malfoy" said Hermione, looking at them coldly. "It has still 3 dunderheads"

"Shut your filthy mouth Mudblood" said the blond Slytherin and tried to pull out his wand. Harry and Ron took their wands out but before any of them could do anything, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle found themselves flying.

"You are the one who should shut his mouth" said Nathan, who looked furious. "Draco Malfoy, right? I see you are trying to be walking on your father footsteps. Same look, same manners and the same loser"

"Don't talk about my father" said Malfoy and pointed his wand at him.

"Do it Malfoy attack me and give me a reason. Go on" said Nathan sarcastically. Other 3 looked at him surprised. Malfoy waited only for a few moments.

"Let's go" he said quietly and left with his goons.

"It was great" said Seamus who came to look what was going on. Everyone had smiles on their faces but Hermione still warned him.

"I know he deserved it but you shouldn't start hexing right away. You could get in trouble"

"You are not the one to talk" said Nathan grinning. "You had your wand in your hand"

"Just to defend us if he started something. I wasn't going to attack" she said calmly.

"Well, I was definitely going to attack. It was awesome" said Ron. Hermione still looked unhappy.

"Look, I am sorry Hermione" said Nathan softly. "I just lost control when he said that word to you"

"You will get used to it" said Hermione, but she looked happier now.

"Broken Wand" said Harry in front of the Gryffindor portrait. The portrait swung open.

"I am going to sleep right away. I am pretty tired. Thank you for everything" said Nathan.

"Yes, I think all of us should sleep" said Hermione. She said good night to everyone and went to Girls dormitory. The boys went to their own dormitory. They were too tired to talk so fell asleep pretty quickly. Nathan was pretty happy and he was sure that it was going to be a pretty exciting year at Hogwarts.

_It will get more interesting in the next chapters, now that they finally entered Hogwarts. Please review, I am open to all suggestions. Thank you._


	5. Chapter 5: Traitor

**A/N: **I want to thank everyone that left a review. I say it once again, it is a Harry/Hermione story. It will just take some time.

I wrote Hagrid's talk normally, I hope you don't mind.

I disclaim everything besides the plot.

**Chapter 5: Traitor?**

Next day, Harry, Hermione and Ron woke up early to show Nathan around the school. The latter woke up even earlier than them. Even thought Ron grumbled for the first half hours, he too agreed that it was a good idea to show Nathan around. Hogwarts was not only huge, but also a really complicated building so it was easy to get lost at the beginning, which they knew from experience. There were hundreds of different stairs and they changed whenever they wanted. Fortunately, Harry's Marauders map helped them immensely with their task. After only a few hours they nearly showed the whole school to the new boy and he learned everything what he needed to know. Nathan learned fast but still when they finally got to breakfast he had a headache from all this information.

"Guys, not that I don't appreciate your help but, did I really have to see _everything _at the first day" asked Nathan, rubbing his head.

"What happened? Where were you" asked Neville curiously.

"We showed Nathan around the castle" answered Harry.

"The whole castle?" asked Dean surprised.

"We thought that it wouldn't do any good to wait" said Ron while filling his plate to its limit. It was his last words for awhile, because everyone knew that Ron was offline to everyone until the end of the breakfast.

"What is the first lesson of the day" asked Harry.

"Double potions" said Hermione.

"Than we have free period" said Harry grinning. "Snape only takes students with an Outstanding to his potion class"

"I hate to burst your bubble but I have bad news. Professor McGonagall said yesterday. Snape decided to accept everyone with Exceed Expectations"

"You are kidding right? Why would he do that" groaned Harry.

"I thing he kind of had to" said Hermione. "McGonagall said that only one student got what he wanted and unfortunately, it wasn't Malfoy. I doubt Snape wanted to have lessons with only me as his student"

Harry groaned. It was actually good news. That just meant his Auror dreams where not crushed yet. But still, the idea of 1 more year with Snape made him shudder.

"I don't have a book or material for that matter" said Harry.

"Professor McGonagall said that she will arrange it for everyone" said Hermione, crushing Harry's last hope.

"After potions, we have double charms" continued Hermione. "Then Transfigurations and Defense against the Dark Arts"

Everyone on the Gryffindor table felt suddenly excited. They all wanted to have lessons with Dumbledore as soon as possible. But even this couldn't relieve Harry, while they walked to the dungeons.

"Is Snape really that bad" asked Nathan to Hermione.

"Well, he is definitely not the fairest person of the school" said Hermione. "Not only he is strict but he mostly protects the Slytherins. Unfortunately, we always had potions alongside Slytherin till now"

"Which doesn't seem to have changed this year" said Ron unhappily. They saw the green trimmed robes in front of the potions class.

"Hey Scar head" called Malfoy with a stupid grin. "How does it feel to have no single real pureblood in your pathetic group. After one mudblood and one blood traitor, you got yourself another Blood Traitor who is also an orphan just like you"

Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy laughed loudly, as if the blond boy said something clever.

"What about you Malfoy" said Harry, without showing his irritation. "Don't push it. No matter how many idiots you have in your gang, you still can't hide your own stupidness"

Gryffindors laughed while Malfoy gave him a sharp look. But before he could answer Snape opened his classroom.

"Get in" said the greasy haired potion master. Malfoy gave Harry another hard look and entered the classroom.

"Good one" whispered Hermione to Harry.

"But how does this Malfoy know that I am a pureblood. He doesn't even know my full name" said Nathan, who didn't say anything for a while. He had an idea, but before he could tell it to the others, Snape told them to be quiet.

"I didn't expect this many students to get an E in my class" said Snape, but he didn't look impressed or happy for that matter. "You may have got your OWLs but if you don't work hard enough then I will gladly throw the Dunderheads of my NEWTs class"

He directly looked at Harry and then at Ron after this statement with an evil grin.

"Today, you will make The Draught of Living Death potion. I warn you, it is not a potion you can make while your minds are at food. The instructions (He waved his wand) are at the table. You have 2 hours. Start now"

Nathan hurried and took everything he needs from the cupboard. When he came back, he saw that Hermione already started hers. His father teached him a lot about potions but he never made a potion this complicated.

At the end of the class, Nathan was sweating but his potion was still a darker blue than it should have been, but it was still blue. Hermione looked up from her perfect light blue potion and gave him a reassuring smile. When Snape finally started walking around the tables, only Hermione's potion was as it should have been. As the Professor walked around the Gryffindors, he made a comment to each of them, none was really nice.

"Awful" he said to Seamus Finnigan's black potion.

"It will work if you want to kill someone with it Mr. Thomas" he said, looking at Dean's grey potion.

"Totally wrong" he said to Lavender.

"Are you sure you know what clockwise means Miss. Patil" he said to Parvati.

"You first have to learn how to handle a knife Weasley" he said, looking at Ron's blood red potion. Ron's face turned to same color as his potion but Snape ignored him. He looked at Harry's cauldron and his eyes suddenly filled with hate that surprised Nathan, even thought he already noticed that the Potion Master didn't like Harry much.

"What is this Potter" asked Snape. All Slytherin's watched them like hungry wolfs.

"The Draught of Living Death" said Harry, even thought he knew that his potion was wrong.

"Are you sure?" asked Snape.

"Yes" said Harry persistently.

"Okay. Then drink it" said Snape. "If it is really correct, then it will only make you sleep and I can wake you up with an Antidote"

Harry was about to say that he will do it no matter what might happen afterwards but Hermione whispered from behind him:

"Don't do it Harry. The Draught of Living Death turns into a horrible poison if it isn't made correctly"

Harry grimaced.

"I can't do it sir" he said to Snape.

"Yes you can't which makes this potion nothing more than garbage" said Snape, and with a wave of his wand, he made his potion disappear. While Harry was barely holding back his anger, Snape came to Hermione and Nathan's table. He gave a short look to Hermione's potion but didn't say anything and directly went to Nathan.

"It looks like being teached by a great wizard like Albus Dumbledore is not enough to be a good wizard" said Snape.

Nathan got angry and wanted to object. He knew his potion was not correct but it was still not bad. But before he could give him an answer, Hermione kicked him under the table.

"Everyone who still has a potion, bring it to the table before leaving" said Snape, looking at Harry who was looking at his empty cauldron and Neville, who lost his potion alongside his cauldron. "And because none of you could make the potion correctly, I want you to write an essay about how it is made and with possible alternatives. At least 2 parchment long. I don't accept excuses. Class dismissed"

"Why did you stop me" asked Nathan angrily as soon as they left the classroom.

"Because you won't gain anything by opposing him in his own classroom" Hermione answered, matching his anger. "Harry is the living proof for this"

"My situation is a little different" said Harry distressed. He also was angry but he was more used to this than Nathan. "Snape always hated me"

"And what about his ignorance towards you, even thought you made the potion correctly" complained Nathan.

"Forget it. Even thought he talks like this, he always gave everyone what they deserved out of the classroom. Well, except Harry" said Hermione and gave him an apologizing look. Harry just shrugged.

"We have half hours free before charms. Let's visit Hagrid"

The boys happily accepted this distraction. Nathan maintained his bad mood all the way to Hagrid's house. They heard the half giants voice from inside.

"Who is it?"

"It is us Hagrid" said Harry.

"I should have known" said Hagrid. Then the door opened and a smiling Hagrid came to view.

"Come in" he said. "I see you already met Nathan"

"How do you…" started Ron.

"The order" answered Nathan simply.

"How is your first day at school" asked Hagrid to him.

The kids told him about their first potion lesson. Hagrid laughed.

"I wonder if there will ever be anyone from Gryffindor who doesn't complain about Professor Snape"

"I wonder why" said Nathan.

"Don't worry about him" said Hagrid firmly. "He may be strict but he is one of the best for this job"

Harry, Ron and Nathan wanted to object but Hermione, who knew that Hagrid hated talking bad about the teachers quickly changed the subject.

"How was your holiday Hagrid" she asked.

"I can't complain. I had a few missions for the order. But don't ask anything, it is a secret. How was yours?"

"Ours was perfect" said Ron sarcastically. "If you exclude the attack on Harry and Hermione. Oh, and the Death Eaters that attacked the Burrow, who nearly killed all of us"

"WHAT" roared Hagrid. Hermione elbowed the redhead on his ribs and Harry gave him a sharp look. They had to explain everything to Nathan before and then to the Gryffindors, now for the third time that day they told Hagrid all about the past summer.

"Didn't you know" asked Nathan.

"No, I didn't. I didn't hear anything while I was at mission. Damn these Death Eaters" he said with a sudden anger.

"I think we should go now" said Hermione. "Or we'll be late for charms"

They quickly said goodbye to their friend and left. They really were late for the class but the real reason why Hermione wanted to leave as soon as possible was her stopping Hagrid from asking questions. She really didn't want to answer anyone for now.

At the end of the lesson, both Harry and Ron were down faced. Only Nathan and Hermione managed to use Invisibility Charm and make their books invisible and Flitchwick wanted the others to practice the charm and write a 2 parchment long essay about what they did wrong.

"We already have too much homework. This is not fair" complained Ron, after the dinner. "We finally finished our OWLs but they still make us work like house elves. I hope McGonagall won't give us any homework"

But Ron's hopes crushed when after the lesson, McGonagall gave them the longest homework ever. After they left the classroom, Ron started saying all kind of rude words about the Transfiguration teacher but no one answered.

"We have Defense against the Dark Arts now" said Hermione, stopping Ron's endless complaining.

"Do you think Dumbledore will really come himself" asked Neville, who came with them to the classroom.

"I hope he will" said Dean.

"Yes, because if he doesn't then Snape will" said Harry.

"And we are with Slytherins again" growled Nathan. But Slytherins obviously thought that they already caused enough problems to them for today, because they were only looking at the door excitedly, just like the Gryffindors. Fortunately, it was Dumbledore that entered the classroom.

"Good morning" said Dumbledore happily. Everyone went silent. They all wanted to start as soon as possible.

"You can put your books away" said Dumbledore smiling. "You will only need your wands today"

The class murmured again and obeyed happily. Even thought they expected him to say something like this, you never could be sure if it came to the ancient Headmaster.

"You all know that I was actually a Transfiguration Professor. So I hope you will go easy on me if I make any mistakes" said Dumbledore with twinkle in his eyes. "But with Voldemort's return, there is no way we could delay this lesson"

"Today, I will teach you nonverbal spells. I know you all want me to teach you something new and I will. But you have to learn nonverbal spells before that. First, can any of you tell me the advantages of nonverbal spells, as opposed to verbal ones"

Hermione's hand shot up and Nathan followed her example.

"Yes Miss. Granger" said Dumbledore.

"The opposing witch or wizard can't know what to expect until we finish the spell. This gives the nonverbal spell user an important advantage"

"Perfect. 10 points to Gryffindor" said Dumbledore. Hermione blushed slightly. "Just like Miss Granger said, the nonverbal spell user has always an advantage over the opponent"

"But if we don't say the incantation, doesn't it make the spell weaker Professor?" asked Seamus.

"No" said Dumbledore. "The words doesn't make the spells stronger, it is just gossip. It just makes easier to concentrate at the spell. Now if you don't have any other questions, we can start"

"The most important thing in nonverbal spell casting is concentration. Not at the words, but at the spell itself. If you can concentrate on what you want your magic to do, then you won't need to say anything. Now I want you all to pair up with a fellow student so we can begin"

With a wave of his wand, he made the tables disappear. It took 2 minutes for everyone to get a partner. Harry paired up with Ron while Hermione paired up with Nathan.

"I want you to use disarming charm so no one gets hurt by accident. Does everyone know how to use that spell? Good. Then start and don't forget, concentrate at your intention, not at the incantation"

Everyone eagerly started but they soon noticed that it was much harder than they expected. For 10 minutes, no one managed to do anything. Then people started to cheat by whispering the incantation. Nathan wasn't doing anything and only watched Hermione. His father already teached him nonverbal spells so he just waited.

15 minutes after they started practicing Hermione managed to disarm Nathan without even moving her lips.

"Good work Miss Granger" said Dumbledore. He looked mildly surprised. "20 points to Gryffindor. Did you already practice this?"

Hermione shook her head negatively. Dumbledore smiled.

"You learned it pretty fast. In fact, I think this was faster than anyone I saw before. Including myself"

Nathan looked her with awe while she blushed furiously. He knew that Hermione was talented but this was unexpected. It took him hours of hard work to finally learn this. Hell, his father even said that he learned pretty fast.

1 hour later, no one else managed to do it. Dumbledore said that it was really hard and success on first day was really rare. After telling them to practice a little, he dismissed the class. When everyone started to leave the class room, Hermione approached Dumbledore. Her friends followed her example.

"Professor?" said an unsure Hermione. Dumbledore looked up with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Yes, Miss Granger"

"You said in St. Mungo that you would tell us a few things when we get back to school" said Hermione, trying not to sound accusing. Now Harry too listened carefully, while the other two looked confused.

"Yes, I remember saying that" said Dumbledore. "But now I have to apologize and say that it is still a bit early to tell it. I hope you can forgive me. I can assure you that I will tell you when the time comes"

"Yes Professor" said Hermione, who looked disappointed.

"But I have to tell you something else" continued the headmaster. "From now on, I want you to practice in your free time. It will help if you know how to fight and if you learn as many spells as possible. I think Nathan can help you for awhile"

"Why" asked Harry.

"Harry, I know I didn't tell you everything but I am sure you all know that you are in danger" answered Dumbledore. Harry felt himself blushing. "You have to learn how to defend yourselves"

The all nodded. Dumbledore smiled again.

"One last thing. Do any of you get the Daily Prophet?"

"I do" said Hermione. "Why do you ask sir?"

"I think you should look at the newspaper tomorrow. You will surely like what you'll see"

"What is it" asked Ron with hope in his voice.

"I don't want to ruin the surprise" said Dumbledore and walked to the door. "You will learn tomorrow"

"What the hell was that" said Harry after he left. The others shrugged.

XxXxXxXxXxXx

That night, Hogwarts was silent as it always was. All students were in bed, just like the most of the staff. Few of them who were still awake were in their rooms.

In the darkness of the night, someone slowly left the castle. He had a Disillusionment Charm on himself, too strong for anyone of his age. He left the castle without anyone seeing him and approached another figure, a woman. Both of them started walking quickly and when they were far enough, the woman took the first figures hand and apparated.

Seconds later, they appeared in front of a man with red, hateful eyes, hundreds of miles away of the ancient castle. The first figure had lost the Disillusionment Charm now.

"Yes" said the Dark Lord looking at the boy.

"Dumbledore told us to look at the Prophet tomorrow" said to boy with a monotone voice. "He is teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts himself. Today, he teached nonverbal spell casting"

"And what about them?" asked Voldemort.

"They didn't notice anything" answered the other boy.

"Do they trust you" asked Voldemort.

"Yes" said the boy emotionlessly.

"Very well" said the most feared Dark Lord and looked at the woman. "Bellatrix! Take the boy back to Hogwarts. He will be more useful than I thought"

"Yes my Lord" said Bellatrix, barely suppressing her excitement and apparated again. Voldemort had an evil smile on his face. His plans were working and that stupid senile fool wouldn't be able to stop him this time.

XxXxXxXxXx

_This was chapter 5. I know that nothing much happened in this chapter but still I hope you will like it. Main characters are still Harry and Hermione, they will get more important soon, I just had to introduce the new character._

_What do you think about Nathan? He is not overpowered don't worry._

_Please leave a review if you read this, I really need some encouragement. _

_Thank you for reading._


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